Shadows of the Past
by Zyra M
Summary: Han and Leia are going on vacation, but it doesn't go entirely as planned. They run into an old enemy from Leia's past who severely complicates matters.
1. The Crash

Han and Leia Solo were seated in the cockpit of the _Millenium Falcon_ as they came out of hyperspace. For once they were going on a well-deserved vacation. They hadn't had any time alone together in as long as either one of them could remember, so he finally insisted that Leia drop her political responsibilities so they could get away from everything for just a few days. Han refused to tell Leia where they were going for their little trip, but she trusted that it would be nice, as long as it was far away from the busy center of the galaxy known as Coruscant. She didn't care if Han took her to the desolate planet Dagobah that Luke had told her about, as long as she got to spend some quality time alone with her husband.

"Are we there yet?"

"Just about, sweetheart. Then we can finally start this vacation of ours."

"Good, I've been waiting for this for a long time."

"_You've_ been waiting for this a long time? How about me? I've been trying to drag you away for months!"

"Well, I just couldn't resist your charms anymore. Actually, I couldn't deprive myself of you for too much longer before I went completely insane."

"Well, it's nice to know at least you still need me sometimes."

"Not sometimes," she corrected, "all the time. Unfortunately, I can't spend _all_ my time off fooling around with you. Luckily, we have all week to make up for it." She smiled at him seductively.

"I like the sound of that," he said as he leaned over and kissed her softly. "But first things__first. Gotta land this thing." He turned his attention back to piloting his ship when the cockpit suddenly began to shake violently.

"What the hell?"

"What is it, Han?"

"I don't know. It's like as soon as we entered the atmosphere I lost control. Nothing's working!" His hands moved furiously across the controls, trying to stop the _Falcon_ from plummeting to the ground. But everything failed to respond and the _Falcon _continued to spiral towards the planet below.

"Better strap in, Leia!" Han shouted, but Leia had already managed to secure herself into the copilot seat. He fought to gain control. He tried everything he could think of, but nothing was working. He looked over to Leia to find that she looked more afraid than he was, if that was possible. He didn't want her to die, and he especially didn't want it to be his fault.

At this point gravity was doing most of the work. Han slammed his fists into the control panel in frustration. The ground was getting closer and he only had a few more seconds to try to soften the blow. But with zero control he had the sudden realization that there was nothing he could do. This was it. This was how he and Leia would die, off in the middle of nowhere because he selfishly wanted to spend a few days alone with her. He looked into her eyes, grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "I'm sorry," he said softly as the tears that began to well up in his eyes.

Leia looked longingly at him and mouthed, "I love you."

Han mouthed the words back at her, wondering if this would be the last time that he would get to see his wife's beautiful face. He didn't want it to end this way. They were too young;, barely married for a year and their life together had only just begun. He squeezed Leia's hand more tightly as they passed the trees and he saw an ocean in front of them. At this speed, hitting the water wasn't going to be any better than hitting solid rock. Han was trying to hold Leia's gaze, trying to sear the memory of her face into his mind for all eternity.

The hull smashed into the treetops and shook the cockpit, and the impact actually managed to slow them down somewhat. Maybe they would be ok after all?

That thought was cut short as the _Falcon_ plunged into the ocean, and everything went black.


	2. The Trek Begins

Leia awoke first. She lifted her head to find sudden pain in her neck. Shutting her eyes tightly, she reached back to massage it with her fingers. Her cheek felt swollen and tender where her face had been resting, so she thought she must've hit it on the control panel when they crashed. Without warning, a sudden realization swept over her: Han.

Her eyes snapped open and she glanced beside her to find Han slumped forward on the controls with his face turned away from her. After undoing the crash webbing she walked to the other side of him and gasped at the sight of his blood sprayed over the controls. There was blood running down his face from a cut over his left eye and running down his chin coming from his mouth. Wrapping her small hands around his strong shoulders, she shook him gently.

"Han?" She spoke his name softly, questioningly. She wasn't sure if he would wake up. Looking at him again she was reminded of the apparent lifelessness of his body when she'd first freed him from Carbonite, and the intense fear she'd felt at the thought that he wasn't coming back to her. She shook him harder this time "Han, wake up… please?" Her vision began to blur as the tears formed in front of her eyes.

She was about ready to lose it completely when she finally felt him stir under her touch and let out a low moan. Relief surged through her, and she shook him again. "Han, come on, wake up."

He moaned again and spit some of the blood from his mouth before wiping the excess with the back of his hand. Leia pushed his hair back from the cut on his forehead, wet with perspiration. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at her. "Leia?"

She smiled down at him. "Hey there, how are you feeling?"

He took a second to consider his answer. "I've had better days." He started to lift his head from the panel and Leia placed a hand on his shoulder to slow him.

"Easy. You've got a nasty cut here."

Han reached up to touch the spot above his eye where the cut was. It was warm and sticky, but the bleeding seemed to have stopped, and he hardly even winced when he touched it. "It's not bad, really. I'll be ok." He looked back at her he seemed to have forgotten about his own injuries. "Are you okay?"

It seemed ridiculous of him to be so worried about her considering the stream of blood running down his face. "Me? Oh, I'll be fine. Just a little sore in the neck and a swollen cheek. Nothing to worry about. Let's get you to the med kit and clean you up a little though, okay?" Han nodded and Leia offered her arm to help him up before she guided him out of the cockpit.

Once Han's wounds had been cleaned, she finished up by placing a soft kiss to his forehead after she sealed his cut with a bandage. "You were a little messy, but I think you'll be all right."

"I think it's just because of the doctor I've got," he said smiling at her.

Leia smiled back, but then her expression became sullen. "Han, what happened up there?"

She didn't want to ask that question. Han had always had complete faith in his flying skills, and so had she. She knew it must've hurt him not to be able to do anything to keep the _Falcon_ from crashing, especially when it had nearly cost them their lives. But she just didn't understand what had happened.

Han looked at the floor, obviously not knowing how to answer the question. "I can't explain it. It was like one second I was flying her in for another perfect landing, and the next, nothing worked. I tried every lever, every thruster, everything on my ship, I just couldn't control her anymore." He finally lifted his head and gave her a sincerely apologetic look. "I'm so sorry."

Leia reached up and put her hands on either side of his face. "Han, there was nothing you could've done. I married the best pilot in the galaxy, and I believe that if you couldn't do anything, nobody could. It wasn't your piloting, it was the fact that you _couldn't_ pilot."

"I'm just glad you're all right." He reached over and brushed his thumb over the red, swollen part of her cheek before leaning over and giving it a tender kiss.

"Well, now that we're stuck, maybe we should get in touch with someone who can get us out of here."

"Um, that's going to be a little tricky right now."

"Oh, no." She didn't like the sound of that.

"Yeah, well, when we lost the controls, we sort of lost our communications, too."

Leia couldn't believe what she was hearing. "What are we going to do? I don't even know where we are!"

"Well, there's not really any civilization here_**, **_just a lot of beautiful beaches and forests. That's why it was going to be perfect for our vacation. It's about as far away from anything as you can get. Smugglers knew about it because it's the perfect place to go if you need to hide out for a little while. Anyway, the Smuggler's Alliance set up a comm station here in case of emergencies. So I guess that's really our only option."

"How far is it?"

"Oh… about, 30… 40 kilometers tops."

"Great."

"I know. It's not exactly how I envisioned us spending our vacation either."

"I guess we should get some supplies then, huh?" There was no use arguing, because they obviously had no choice.

They gathered their belongings and shoved them into their packs. "We'd better go out the top hatch considering the ramp is under water. Luckily it's pretty shallow here, so it doesn't look like she'll sink. We may even be able to save her."

"I hope so. I can't imagine flying around the galaxy in some other hunk of junk." She pulled his arm along as they went over and opened the _Falcon's_ top hatch and revealed the blazing sun overhead. Leia shut her eyes and felt the warmth absorb into her skin. The air was hot and sticky, but she hadn't felt that warm in a long time after spending most of her time in climate-controlled buildings back on Coruscant. She would've been more excited about the heat had it not been for the fact that she and Han had to hike through it to get to the comm station.

"Yeah, I forgot to tell you," Han said. "It gets pretty warm here. It would've been perfect if we had spent the whole time lying on the beach like I meant for us to."

"That's ok, Han. I'm sure I'll survive. Looks like the_ Falcon_ is pretty secure on the bottom here. She should be here when we get back."

Han looked around the edges of his ship. "Yeah, she should be okay. Well, I guess it's time to get wet."

"What?" Leia asked just before she realized what Han meant. He had jumped feet first into the ocean, and when he resurfaced in the clear, blue sea, he spit some water up at her playfully.

"Come on in, the water's beautiful!" Leia smiled and jumped in after him. The warm salt water enveloped her, and she couldn't remember the last time she had swum in an ocean. She had to admit, the planet was beautiful. There were enormous, green trees reaching up to the sky along the shore. Han sure knew how to pick their vacation destinations, and she made a mental note that someday they would have to come back. She only wished that right now they could relax and enjoy it.

After swimming to shore and drying off, they began their hike through the dense forest.


	3. The Waterfall

It seemed like they had been walking forever. The thick forest trees blocked the sun almost completely, and it reminded Leia of the forest on Endor with the exception of this planet – whatever planet it was – being a great deal warmer. The air had gotten stickier as they got further and further from the ocean. The combination of the humidity and the physical demands on their bodies from the hike made Han and Leia sweat uncontrollably.

Leia had her hair pulled back away from her neck and was wearing a sleeveless shirt and loose-fitting shorts. Her clothes were wet with sweat, and they clung uncomfortably to her skin. When Han's short-sleeved shirt had become completely soaked, he decided he was better off without it and he had stuffed it into his pack. The hair on his head was dripping and he had to constantly wipe his brow to keep the sweat out of his eyes. Though immensely tired, Leia still took the opportunity to admire Han's body. His skin glistened with sweat, accentuating the hard muscle beneath. And she noted that it was far too rare that she got to see the man wearing cargo shorts, allowing her such a great view of his legs as he walked.

Earlier she had caught Han giving her a similar appreciative glance once he noticed the way her white shirt hugged her skin and had started to become transparent. It was the kind of thing that might've made her uncomfortable had anyone else been around, but since it was only her husband, she had to admit that she enjoyed the fact that he still so obviously found her attractive. So far she hadn't gotten tired of looking at him, either, and they exchanged knowing smiles before continuing their journey.

They hadn't spoken in a while, as they were too exhausted to bother. They just kept on walking. Leia didn't know how she was going to be able to keep it up much longer. It had been hours, and her breath was coming short, and the muscles in her legs burned from exertion. Han looked to be suffering a similar fate, but just as he looked like he was opening his mouth to break the silence, he stopped for a moment before heading off in a direction they hadn't originally been heading.

Leia followed, suddenly hearing the sound of rushing water. Trailing behind Han as he marched determinedly off, she finally saw what he had headed for. They emerged in a clearing, and there in front of them was a towering waterfall that must've been hundreds of meters tall. The water in the river below was flowing slowly, creating a very inviting pool. Lush greenery lined the water, as well as big, beautiful flowers in at least a dozen different colors.

Leia looked up and saw the sun getting lower and glowing orange in the purple sky, feeling the mist from the waterfall soothe her heated face. Without a word Han dropped his pack on the ground and walked directly into the water. He dipped his head under and sighed with relief when he came up for air and ran his hands over his face. He looked at Leia and smiled as he signaled for her to join him.

She was more than willing to comply as she dropped her pack next to his and walked into the cool, clean water. Her clothes were soaked already, so a little swim wasn't going to make much of a difference. She waded over to where her husband was standing and put her arms around his neck. He could stand easily where he was, but she, being quite a bit shorter, preferred latching onto him to keep herself up rather than treading water. He seemed to like that idea better as well.

"It's beautiful here, Han. You picked a nice place for our vacation. Too bad we can't enjoy it the way we're supposed to."

"Hey, _I'm_ enjoying it," Han said. "Listen, it's going to be pretty dark soon and we're both too tired to walk any further. This seems like the perfect place to spend the night."

"So you want me to just spend the entire night next to this gorgeous waterfall with _you_?"

He gave her his famous grin, and it almost made her wish that they'd never be found. "Yep, that's pretty much the idea."

"I like that plan." She pulled herself to him and kissed him.

After a few moments, he pulled away. "I like my plan, too." Then he leaned back in and kissed her harder. His hands reached under the water to pull her shirt up over her head, allowing the refreshing water to lap against her bare torso. "As long as we're in here, we might as well give our clothes a chance to dry."

Leia thought that sounded like a good idea, even though she knew that having dry clothes wasn't the primary reason Han had thought of it, but she wasn't about to argue. Moving behind him, she held onto his shoulders as he pulled them back toward dry land. Once they were out of the water Han placed Leia's dripping shirt over a tree limb to dry. He then started to remove his own sopping wet cargo shorts, revealing the gray briefs he wore underneath that were clinging to his body in all the right places. He looked up at Leia who was watching him. "You're not the only one who needs some dry clothes, you know."

"Don't worry about me. I'm just admiring the view."

"Well, maybe now I'll give you something even better to look at." With that, he reached down and slipped out of his briefs. No, Leia was pretty sure she would never get tired of looking at him, but she was momentarily snapped back to reality when he spoke again. "And what about you? Wouldn't it be nice to have some dry shorts to put on when we finish with our little swim?"

"Good thinking. I guess I better just leave these here then, huh?" She said as she started to remove the remainder of her clothing. Being one of the most recognized couples in the galaxy, it was nearly impossible for Han and Leia to share an impulsive skinny dip under most circumstances. This crash landing was getting better all the time.

"Well, it would be the best place for them to dry," he responded. She handed him her clothes and he hung them next to her shirt on the limb and then added his own shorts. When he turned around, Leia had already gotten back in the water, waiting for him. He merely watched her as she reached up and let her hair down before she dipped her head under and came up to find him still staring at her in what could only have been described as intense love.

She smiled up at him, attempting to convey the same back at him. Unable to take her eyes off his naked form before her, she wondered how she could let politics come first so often when she was married to the man in front of her. She determined it must've been a curse; a sense of duty she'd been born with that she'd never been able to get rid of. She'd been doing better lately, which was why she was on this vacation in the first place. But it still seemed that she was never able to put her own selfish needs above the needs of others. Fortunately, at the moment, there was no other alternative.

She was surprised when Han didn't get right into the water, but instead walked along the shore and up onto some rocks above the river. He stepped up to the edge and dove headfirst into the water. Leia looked around, waiting for him to surface, but she had lost sight of him. When he hadn't yet appeared, she was momentarily worried that the water was more shallow than he had anticipated and he might've hit his head. But suddenly, she felt strong arms grab her by the legs, and she screamed as he hoisted her up into the air on one shoulder.

"Put me down, you scoundrel!"

He lowered her and she slid down his body before she was at eye level with him. "Scoundrel? I like the sound of that."

Leia smiled at their old joke and he leaned in and began to kiss her, starting at her lips and then continuing to her ear, down to her neck and collarbone. Her head fell back and Leia wondered how could anything be more perfect. Well, maybe if they hadn't just crashed the _Falcon_, but that was the last thing on Leia's mind at this point. All she knew was that she was here, in the middle of the warm water of a gorgeous river next to a towering waterfall surrounded by beautiful flowers with the man that she loved.

Her legs were wrapped around his waist and she was basically floating. Only Han's head and shoulders were above the water as he brought his mouth back to hers. Her hands slid up from his neck and she ran her fingers through his wet hair as they continued to savor a long, slow kiss.

They made love in the water, under the setting sun. It momentarily erased any worries about why they were actually there. If this was what life was going to be like on this planet, maybe it wasn't so bad to be stranded after all.


	4. Rude Awakening

Just after sunset, Han and Leia had set up their camp for the night. Their clothes had dried enough to put back on, which was good since it was all they had. After forcing down some near-tasteless rations, Han was beginning to wonder if maybe he should've considered bringing Leia to one of the more luxurious resort planets, complete with sprawling suits, lavish beds and some of the best cuisine from all over the galaxy. And the best part? They would bring it to your room if you wanted.

Instead, Han found himself building them a fire because he knew it would get colder once the sun was gone, and Leia had set up a simple yet effective two-person tent with one, large woolen blanket, which Leia then emerged with.

"It was getting a little cold, but I still want to look at the stars, so I thought we could use this."

"Yeah, the stars out here are incredible."

Han sat and leaned against a rather large log he had pulled up next to his fire and Leia joined him. They wrapped themselves in the blanket, savoring each other's warmth. Han wrapped his arms around his wife and she rested her head against his chest before staring up at the star-filled sky.

"It's gorgeous here, Han. I'm glad we came."

"Me too. I just wish we had _landed_ here as opposed to crashing here."

Leia laughed. "Let's forget about that for now and just be happy that we're here together under this beautiful sky."

"Are you sure you wouldn't be happier if I'd brought you to some fancy resort somewhere?"

"That'd be nice, too. But you have to admit, this isn't so bad. I could enjoy being just about anywhere with you."

He kissed her forehead and she squeezed him tighter. Before long they shut her eyes and drifted off into sleep.

* * *

Leia awoke the next morning when the sun shone in her eyes. She squinted and lifted her head to find Han next to her. _Good thing I bothered to set up that tent for us,_ she thought. She wanted to stay there in Han's arms for just a little bit longer, but they really did need to find that comm station. After all, they only had so much food with them.

She reached over and brushed her hand gently along his cheek. "Han? Han, time to get up."

Han shifted a bit and then slowly opened his eyes. He looked annoyed that his sleep had been disturbed, but then he looked next to him and saw Leia smiling back.

"Good morning, sleepy head," Leia said.

"Good morning, Your Worship. I trust you slept well."

"Of course. I had a great pillow."

"Well, I didn't." He reached back to massage the aching part of his neck where he had been awkwardly leaning against the log all night.

"Yeah, tomorrow night we should probably think about using the tent."

"I think that might be the best idea." He squinted as he moved to get up and tried to stretch out his aching neck. "We really should get moving. It might not be too hot out for an hour or two. We could really cover some distance."

"Sounds good to me."

Once they had quickly packed up their things, they headed off in search of the comm station.

* * *

The heat and humidity had returned. After having moved along pretty well for the first forty-five minutes or so, the sun was high overhead and the air had grown considerably warmer. Their clothes that had been dry when they began this hike were once again soaked through with sweat. They stayed along the river so that they could periodically splash water on their faces to cool off. It didn't do a lot of good, but it was better than nothing.

They were both completely exhausted. Leia now seemed to be struggling with every step and she finally reached up and grabbed Han's arm. "Han…I've got… to stop… for a minute," Leia said as she gasped for breath.

Han wasn't doing much better, and was slightly relieved that she had spoken up first. "Good… 'cuz I… do too."

They leaned up against a large rock and Han pulled the canteen from his pack and took a few gulps before handing it to Leia.

"I figure we're getting pretty close. But then again I haven't been here in a while."

"As long as we're more than halfway there, I'll be happy."

"Oh, we're definitely at least halfway… I think."

Before Leia had a chance to respond, a blaster bolt flew by Han's head and singed a tree next to them. Han shoved Leia out of the way as they ducked behind the rock. He pulled his blaster from his holster and fired several times in the direction the blast had come from. He paused for a moment when the firing stopped, and he looked out into the forest, but all he saw were trees. He looked at Leia and shrugged his shoulders. She looked as puzzled as he did. Suddenly Leia snapped her head back as she sensed someone behind her. She turned just in time to see a man fire a stun bolt at her. Han whirled to fire but he was also stunned, and he blacked out before he even hit the ground.


	5. Old Enemy Returns

Han awoke first this time. He found himself sprawled out on his stomach with his face was pressed against a cold, stone floor. It took him a moment to come back to himself and remember what had transpired to bring him to his current predicament. Couldn't they ever have a nice, quiet vacation without somebody trying to kill them?

Han looked around the cell to take in his surroundings. It was a square room with a stone floor and walls and ceiling that looked to be made of concrete. The gray walls had some sort of green fungus growing where they met the ceiling and floor, and there were no windows. The air quality didn't seem to have changed, so he figured that they were at least still on the same planet, although there was no way to tell how long they'd been out of it.

He turned his head and looked next to him where he saw his wife lying on her side. Her stun bolt had not worn off yet, but she looked like she was sleeping peacefully in spite of her tangled hair strewn around her head.

Han couldn't figure out who had done this. Nobody even knew they were there, except of course for Luke, but nobody would get any information out of him. Hell, _Leia _didn't even know where they were. Han moved over to the door to see if it would open, but he was startled as it slid open to reveal a short, stumpy man holding a tray with some bread, fruit and water. Han stepped back and instinctively reached for his blaster, which, of course, had been taken away from him. At least they gave had given him his shirt back, which he noticed was crumpled in a ball in the corner.

The man placed the tray on the floor and stepped back for a moment to look at Han. "Better have something to eat," the man said. "His Highness won't be here for a few more hours." Then he exited the room and left Han and Leia alone once again.

_His Highness__**s**__?_ Who could he possibly be talking about? Han decided it was probably time to wake Leia up, so he sat down next to her and brushed the backs of his fingers along her forehead. "Leia?"

She smiled in response to his touch and opened her eyes. The smile quickly faded as she realized where she was.

"Hey, how's it going?"

Leia sat up and looked around. "Han, where are we?"

"I'm not exactly sure."

"Why does this always happen to us?"

"We're just popular, I guess."

Leia looked over and saw the tray of food, apparently realizing how hungry she was.

Han saw her looking longingly at it and she licked her lips. "Oh yeah. Some guy brought this for us. Real first class accommodations, here. Go ahead and have some. If they really wanted to kill us I think they would've done it by now. He said we better eat something since 'His Highness' won't be here for a few hours."

Leia went over to the food tray, picked up a piece of fruit and took a bite. "His Highness? Who do you suppose that might be?"

"I wish I knew. But at least it seems like they're going to leave us alone for a little while."

"Are you sure you don't remember anyone, Han? There wasn't, say, some Smuggler's Alliance king of this middle-of-nowhere planet that you screwed out of a whole lot of money before you joined the Alliance and we scared you straight, was there?"

"Hey, I know I have quite the past, but I think I'd remember messing with 'His Highness.' Can you think of any royalty off the top of your head that might want to capture us and, on top of that, would actually know where we are?"

"The only royalty we've been in contact with recently is Prince Isolder," Han cringed when she spoke that name. It always reminded him of how close he came to losing Leia forever. She gave him a sympathetic look and reached over and squeezed his arm. "Don't worry, Han. I would never want to marry a prince anyway. I like scoundrels, remember?" She seemed to sense that he was still sensitive about the issue, so she continued. "Besides, I don't think there would be any reason he would want us, especially now that he's back on Hapes starting his own family."

Han couldn't argue with that point. Still, none of this made any sense. He picked up another piece of fruit from the tray and sank his teeth in. "Not bad for prison food."

Leia finished her own fruit and moved on to the bread. As long as this food was here, they might as well eat it. All they could do was wait to find out who 'His Highness' was. Han hated waiting. But at least he was stuck waiting with the prettiest woman in the galaxy.

* * *

Hours later, Han and Leia were still clueless as to why they were locked in their cell. It was warm and musty, and the lack of any air circulation made it even warmer as time passed by. Leaning up against the wall, Han's arm draped over Leia's shoulder, they had shut their eyes to rest when they heard the door slide open. Han opened his eyes in the hopes that maybe someone would explain what the hell was going on. He frowned when he saw the same short, stumpy man who had brought them their food. The stranger leaned over and picked up the empty tray before standing up to look Han in the eye. "His Highness will be here in a moment."

Leia looked at Han and they both looked back at the door as a tall, green-skinned alien appeared in the doorway. Han was still completely confused, but Leia's eyes widened in shock, as though she had seen him before and finally realized who 'His Highness' was.

"Ah, the lovely Princess Leia. How I've missed you."

Han looked over to Leia, and they remained on the floor in each other's arms. He hated when he didn't know what was going on. He always liked to know who his enemies were, and he was quite sure he had never seen this ugly bastard before in his life. But how did Leia know who he was and how the hell had he found them?

"Prince Xizor," she spoke his name calmly. Her years of diplomatic training made her sound completely at ease in almost any situation. "What brings you here?"

"I should be asking you that question, Princess. But of course, I should already know the answer."

Xizor. Where had Han heard that name before? He didn't have a chance to think about it because he was preoccupied with the anger he was feeling at the way this guy was looking at Leia. Xizor's eyes seemed to be ogling Leia's entire form, and Han possessively pulled her closer as something in his stomach churned. Fury started to build within him, and all Han wanted to do was lunge forward and kick the shit out of him right there and then.

He bit his tongue and tried to calm himself. Xizor was large and muscular and probably outweighed Han by more than a few kilos, but with the anger Han was feeling, he was pretty sure he'd be able to inflict some damage, but now was probably not the time. Having been stunned earlier, he figured there were probably more stun bolts to go around. He hated when rationality won out. He must have finally started to grow up. But he wouldn't forget how he felt right then. He would get to Xizor later.

Xizor's eyes moved to look at Han, apparently noticing the fury burning in his eyes. "Ah, Han Solo. I don't believe I've had the pleasure. You were somewhat out of commission when I first became acquainted with the beautiful princess here. It's too bad you aren't still hanging as Jabba's wall decoration, although it didn't surprise me one bit that the Princess was able to kill him with her bare hands. Still, a lowly smuggler. What were you thinking, Leia?"

Han was pretty sure he'd never wanted to hit someone more in his entire life. He didn't want to hear about anyone, especially _this_ guy, becoming 'acquainted' with his wife. Forgetting the stun bolts, he was going to get at least one good shot in on this bastard. Han leapt to his feet and lunged at Xizor. He brought his arm back to take a swing at his ugly, green face, but Xizor blocked the punch with his forearm and gave Han a hard blow to the gut with his free hand Han collapsed to the floor and held his stomach as he gasped and coughed, trying to catch his breath.

Xizor looked down at Han, shook his head and then looked back to Leia who had moved to Han's side, making sure he was all right. "There, you see what I mean? You choose _this_, when you could've had someone like me. I guess it's the pity factor at work."

"Go to hell," Leia shot back at him, forgetting all of her diplomatic training. He had simply pushed her too far.

"Ooh, feisty. Now I remember why I wanted you in the first place. Come on, how can you forget what we had? You know there was a time when I was irresistible to you."

Han still didn't understand any of what he was hearing. Who was this guy? And how did he know Leia? And how could he possibly believe that Leia had found him irresistible?

"Enough, just tell us what you want from us?" Leia asked, helping Han to sit up.

"Oh, I will explain when the time is right. But for now, I'll just leave you here with your pathetic husband to fantasize about our night together and think about what you could've had." He blew her a kiss and let the door shut behind him. Leia glared at him and then turned her attention back to Han.

He sat up and coughed once more before he looked at her, holding his hand to his side and trying to catch his breath. He didn't know what to ask. He wasn't sure he wanted to know, but he decided he couldn't stand being left in the dark, no matter how painful the truth might be.

"Leia?" He coughed once more. "Who the hell is this Prince Xizor, and what does he have to do with you?"

"Here, I think you should have some water. Then I'll tell you the whole story."

* * *

"Do you remember he was the head of the Black Sun organization?"

"Yeah, I thought the name sounded familiar. But I thought he was dead."

"So did I." She wished now more than ever that that was still the case. "I told you that I met him a few years ago and we gave him a little trouble. But we all thought Vader had killed him." Leia hoped that explanation was going to be enough to satisfy his curiosity, but she knew he would never settle for that.

"What did he mean when he kept saying things like, 'what we could've had'? You didn't ever like, _date _this guy, did you?"

"Well, not exactly. He sort of found me attractive when we stayed at his palace and he wanted me to…"

Han stopped her. "Leia, everyone finds you attractive. Please, tell me nothing happened."

"It wasn't exactly nothing…"

The look on Han's face just before he stood and walked away was almost enough to break her heart. She briefly considered how she would feel if Han were telling her something similar. It wasn't just that they were deeply in love, but they also shared a mutual respect and complete trust in one another, so hearing something of this nature was sure to come as a complete shock. Han knew that she had never been with any man before him.

He didn't look at her when he asked the next question. "Where was I when all this was going on?"

"You were frozen in carbonite."

Han turned back to her with a look that was a combination of devastation and fury. It took him a moment to form his next words. "How could you do that? I'm out of it for a couple of months and you find yourself a nice, buff prince and then the two of you…" His eyes looked glassy from tears, and he turned away from her again, unable to finish the sentence.

Leia suddenly realized what he thought had happened. She didn't want to lie and say that absolutely nothing happened between her and the prince, but she couldn't make him believe it had gone _that_ far.

She stood up and walked over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. His t-shirt remained damp with sweat. "No, Han you don't understand. I would never do anything to hurt you."

Han quietly but forcefully interrupted her. "Well, you did."

"No, Han, I did not sleep with Xizor."

He seemed somewhat relieved by her simple yet direct statement. He looked her in the eyes again and seemed afraid to ask his next question, his voice cracking. "Did you want to?"

Leia didn't know what to say. The truth was, at the time, yes she did. She was incredibly attracted to him, but she later realized that it was because he released a powerful pheromone that had the effect of a drug on her. The only reason she didn't have sex with him was because Chewie had interrupted. _Thank you Chewie_. She shuddered at the thought of what she almost did.; a horrible mistake that she would never have forgiven herself for, even if it wouldn't have been entirely her fault. Invulnerable as she liked to believe she was, it was nearly impossible for humans to resist the effects of Falleen pheromones.

She used the most gentle tone she could. "Han, sit down," Reluctantly, he sat down next to her on the floor, his hazel eyes burning into her with a pained and confused gaze. "When I first met him, I'll admit, I was attracted to him. He invited me back to his room, and at first it had been just to save Luke, even though I wanted to go anyway." She didn't want to continue, but she hated herself for being the cause of the growing pain in Han's eyes, and she needed to tell him the truth. This story sounded a lot worse in the beginning than it did in the end. She only hoped he would see it that way.

"When I saw him, I wanted to be with him. It didn't make any sense, I mean, I barely even _knew _him. I had never felt like that before. I would never do something like that behind your back, _ever_. That's why it seemed so strange, but my actions seemed to be out of my control. Eventually he kissed me, and I'll admit, I didn't want him to stop."

A tear finally made its way down Han's cheek and he didn't even bother to wipe it away. She knew how this must've sounded, thinking that she was with another man when she was supposed to be rescuing Han. She hoped he would understand her reasoning, and she continued. "Then out of nowhere, Chewie pounded on the door and interrupted us. I went to the door to talk to him."

Han's face turned to a look of anger. "So Chewie was the only reason you didn't end up in bed with that guy? Good thing he owes me a life debt or I'd probably still be hanging on the wall at Jabba's Palace while you and Xizor were off somewhere living in your nice palace with a couple of kids."

"No Han, that's not true." She knew it never would've gone that far. However, it seemed inevitable that she would've done something that she'd regret for the rest of her life had Chewie not been there to stop her in time for whatever spell Xizor had cast on her to be broken.

"I wasn't myself that night. It was as though I had been drugged. His species is able to exude a powerful pheromone that acts almost like a drug. When used on humans it is more powerful and that's why I had almost no control over my actions. I would _never_ have done what I did if I hadn't been chemically influenced." She reached over and cupped his stubbly chin in her hand. "I love you. I meant it when I said it before you were frozen. I would never knowingly hurt you that way and I would _never_ want to be with another man. You're the only one, you always have been and you always will be."

He looked at her then, seemingly realizing the sincerity of her admission , although it didn't seem to be enough to take away the hurt and anger he was feeling, knowing what Xizor had put her through.

"Leia, did he hurt you at all?"

"No. After Chewie came by I realized what I had been doing and I was able to resist the effects of the pheromones. I went back in there and when he came back to kiss me again, I kneed him as hard as I could right in the groin."

Han couldn't suppress the smirk that tugged at his lips. "I bet that caught him by surprise."

She smiled back, remembering the intense satisfaction she'd felt when she injured the most prized part of his anatomy. "Sure did. He thought he had me. I guess he didn't know who he was dealing with."

Han's smile disappeared, still not entirely happy with the situation.

"Hey. After that, all I could think about was getting you back. I never felt so guilty in my life. I thought I had betrayed you, and I could never forgive myself if I didn't get you back and make everything right again. It made me remember just how much I missed you and needed you… And loved you."

Han turned to face her again. She was looking into his eyes, searching for forgiveness. His face melted and he leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Just tell me one thing: do you think I'm better looking than he is?"

Leia was relieved that Han had finally decided to insert his typical humor to the situation, and she didn't have to give her answer much thought. She had been attracted to Xizor once, but that had been the pheromones at work. Now she simply found him repulsive. No, Han was the only man for her.

"Absolutely. I'm not really into men with claws anyway. I like my men a little rough around the edges," she reached up and touched the scar on his chin. "But still devastatingly handsome." She kissed his lips softly.

"Good," he responded as he put his arm around her and held her to him. Leia was relieved that she had finally told Han the whole story, and that he didn't seem to be angry with her anymore. She was going to make Xizor wish he had never come back into her life.


	6. Ultimatum

Several hours had passed. Another tray of food had come and gone, and there was still no word yet on what was going to happen next. Han was still uneasy about everything Leia had just told him about Xizor, and he couldn't seem to erase the image in his head of the green prince kissing his wife. It probably would've been easier for her to tell him when they all thought Xizor was dead, but now there was the threat of the same thing happening again. Han decided that if Xizor tried anything like that again, he'd have to kill him.

"What do you suppose he wants from us?"

Startled, Leia jumped in Han's arms. Neither one of them had spoken in a while. As far as they could tell, their last meal was dinner, so night had likely fallen by now. Their concept of time had been altered since the stun bolts, but it seemed like night since they were both growing tired. "I don't know what he could want. He's supposed to be dead."

"So you told me. Of course, when you did tell me this story you left out a few of the more intimate details."

Han was still uncomfortable with the news he had just received, but he found it difficult to stay bad at Leia, especially knowing it wasn't entirely her fault. "I thought it would save us both a little pain if I just kept it to myself."

"Well, you were right. I wish you didn't have to tell me. But then again, I wish more that there was nothing to tell me in the first place."

"You and me both."

Han looked down at Leia, leaning against the wall in their tiny, gray cell. He hated the thought of her with another man, especially this man. Leia looked back up at him and he could tell that she was feeling guilty all over again about what had happened. He rubbed his callused hands along her arms as a comforting gesture. "Listen, I know it wasn't your fault. I still don't like it. But I'm mad at him, not you." He leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

"I'm glad you understand. I still feel awful about it, though."

"Don't worry about it. You can make it up to me later." He gave her a wink and she smiled back momentarily.

"I'm worried about what he has in store for us. He's not a typical criminal, Han. We could be in some serious trouble here."

"What else is new? We're going to have to figure out a way out of here. Maybe he'll take us out of the cell soon."

"Hopefully. It's too stuffy in here."

"Well, I doubt they had guest comfort in mind when they designed it." She was right though. He hadn't thought about it in a while since he was too busy thinking about what he was going to do to Xizor when he had the chance. But now that she mentioned it, it was quite uncomfortable and sticky. Beads of sweat ran down his temples and his t-shirt was matted against his skin. Whatever kind of building they were in, it couldn't have been a very new one. He determined that this must've been the run-down old shelter on their smuggler's hideout. Make that the _old_ smuggler's hideout. When he was younger he had heard that they had converted an old temple they had found on the planet. But because of the uncomfortable conditions, they built a new one where the comm station was. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. Most of the smugglers slept on their own ships so that they could keep an eye on their hauls. Nobody trusted anyone in that business, and there was a good reason for it.

Leia let out a yawn and shut her eyes against Han's chest. It was a gesture he might've appreciated more if he wasn't already so damn hot. He looked down at her and saw that she was ready to fall asleep. "Wait, hold up a second."

Leia's eyes snapped open. "What? What is it?"

Han began to shift his back away from the wall. "I'm not sleeping in that position again. Come on, lie down here." He lowered himself down flat across the stone floor. He still hadn't recovered from that stiff neck the night before. Leia waited until he had lain down on his back and then rested her head against his chest again before she reached over, brought his hand to her mouth and kissed it

"Goodnight, Han."

Han pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed it. "Goodnight, Leia."

* * *

They were awakened by the sound of their cell door opening. The light poured into the room , and Han squinted in the direction of the door and Leia lifted her head up and noticed that it was time for their breakfast. At least they were well fed. Without a word, the short man placed the tray on the ground and shut the door behind him. "It's always nice to get room service, isn't it?" Han remarked.

Leia didn't seem all that amused by the comment, but still appreciated her husband's attempts at lightening the mood. At least so far they had basically been left alone. Han leaned over and pulled the tray closer to the corner where they had slept and sat back against the wall. He reached up to rub once again at his apparently still-aching neck. "I'll tell you one thing: I'm not taking pillows for granted ever again."

He picked up a piece of fruit and handed it to Leia. She gave the skin a quick inspection and took a bite. "I hate waiting," she said.

"Me too," Han said through his mouthful of bread. "Whatever he's gonna do, I wish he'd get it over with and just do it already. At least get us out of here for a few minutes. I'm startin' to feel claustrophobic."

"He'll do something soon. He doesn't like waiting, either."

As though she had known he was coming, the door opened once again. This time there was no short man, only a very tall, green one. "Sorry to cut the meal short, but we've got to get started here." He motioned for two rather large, human guards who stepped forward and grabbed Han and Leia by the arms, blasters digging into their backs and urging them forward. At least they were going to begin to know what they were up against. When they stepped into the light and began to walk down a long, concrete hallway, Leia noticed what a mess they both were. Their once-white shirts were smudged with dirt, Han's hair was even more of a mess than usual, and half of it was matted to his head from the sweat. She imagined hers wasn't looking very nice either. Han's bandage had come loose and fallen off of his forehead and blood had begun to ooze out once again. Leia could only imagine that her cheek had become bruised from when she hit the control panel in the crash. They looked like they had been prisoners for weeks. The truth was that most of the damage had been done before they had even been taken captive. That was just their luck.

After a few minutes of walking, they were pushed forward into a large room that had been outfitted as a makeshift communications area. This was all Xizor's own equipment, Han guessed. The Smuggler's Alliance had never set anything up since they had abandoned this building years ago, and this stuff looked brand new. They were led over to two small chairs against the wall where they sat obediently even though they had not been restrained in any way. Everyone in the room had a blaster except for them, and as far as they could tell, not one of these guys was on their side. Might as well be cooperative, at least for the time being.

Xizor stood close enough in front of them so they had to strain their necks to look at his face. "Now is about the time when I tell you why I brought you here. You must remember a little organization called the Black Sun?" Leia and Han didn't respond; they just continued to listen. "I know you do. Well anyway, I need a little…" he searched for the right word, "leverage to get it back off the ground. Now that there is no Empire, I figure I can become the head of the most powerful and feared organization in the galaxy. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

"Then what the hell do you need us for?" Han asked, his voice remaining uncharacteristically calm.

"You two are that leverage. Your rank with the New Republic government will keep them from attacking, and your relationship to a certain Luke Skywalker will keep those pesky Jedi away. I have quite a few associates ready to jump back on board with my organization as soon as we have the cooperation of the New Republic. But until then, I'm on my own, I'm afraid. Not for long though. Relax, I only need you for a little while."

"You must know that the New Republic is not willing to negotiate with beings such as yourself," Leia said.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that. You two are a great asset to the New Republic. And on top of everything else, I figure maybe you and I, Leia, can pick up where we left off."

"That'll be the day," Leia said.

Han's eyes narrowed. If it was possible, he was beginning to hate this guy even more. He silently cheered at Leia's retort. She never ceased to amaze him.

"We'll just have to wait and see, won't we?"

"How did you know we were going to be here?" Han asked. It just didn't seem to make sense that Xizor was there waiting for them with all of these elaborate plans. It was too much of a coincidence.

"I've got friends in low places, Solo. Smuggler friends, bounty hunter friends who are quite good at following ships, as well as _Jedi _friends who are quite good at making a ship crash into a planet."

A sudden realization came over Han. It wasn't his fault, after all. Xizor had nearly taken their lives in that crash. Han decided that when he killed him, he was going to take his time.

"And this is where I'm going to run my new organization. At first anyway. Until I can get more associates back on board. This is no place for a prince to run everything forever."

"Of course not, Your_ Majesty,_" Han spoke the final word mockingly as he glared into Xizor's evil eyes.

"I wouldn't speak to me in such tones. Let me remind you that I am the one who is in control here."

"What's the difference? You got us, congratulations. You have no hostages if you kill us, so I figure we have the upper hand in that department."

Xizor leaned down close to Han and he could feel his breath as he spoke. "But I can make your stay more painful if I see fit." Without warning, he brought his fist across Han's face, reopening the cut on his forehead. Han brought his head back up to face Xizor once again, defiantly. "It can get a lot worse than that. Trust me. For you, _and_ for your wife."

Han thought it best to keep his mouth shut at this point, and Leia seemed to be glad that he did. Xizor was not the type to toy with.

"Now that you're quiet we will send out a communication and inform the galaxy that the Black Sun has returned and you two are here to make sure that nobody tries to stop us. Come in here!" Xizor yelled to the next room. A gorgeous woman with long, silky blond hair appeared at the doorway, and another look of recognition came over Leia's face. "I'm sure you remember my trusted friend, Guri. She escaped that little blast Vader tried, too. Glad to hear that he's dead now. Guri, please set up for communications."

Guri obliged by walking over to the control panel and shifting around a few knobs and buttons. Leia and Han stared at Xizor in silent rage. This was not how their vacation was supposed to turn out.

"Ready," Guri said to Xizor. He straightened himself up and nodded for Guri to begin transmitting.

"Hello again. I'm sure many of you may remember me, although you may be wondering what I'm doing alive. You can't get rid of Prince Xizor so easily. The Black Sun is going to rise to power once more. And just to be sure, I have myself a couple of hostages so you're more cooperative. I know they have some particular value to your New Republic, so I expect for you to accept this shift in power. I'm sure you'll hear from me again soon."

Guri ended the transmission and Xizor turned back to Han and Leia. "Don't look at me that way. This will be a wonderful arrangement for all involved if you both cooperate." Their expressions didn't change. "No? Well, all in due time. Take them back to their cell."


	7. The Response

The Solos were pushed back into their stone-floored cell and the door abruptly slammed behind them. Han was feeling more defeated than he had in a long time. They needed to find a way out of there, and they needed to find it fast.

"Do you suppose Xizor actually believes that he can do whatever he wants just because he has the two of us?" Leia asked.

"I don't know," Han answered honestly. "You know him a hell of a lot better than I do."

"I hope the New Republic knows better than to compromise everything we've accomplished simply to spare our lives."

"You think they'll see it that way? Do you think they'd give us up so easily?"

"I hope so, but I'm not sure if they would. If I could I'd tell them to."

"I don't think Xizor would like that."

"I don't either. I just hope they know that we're not important in the grand scheme of things."

"Are you saying we're expendable?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes. If losing us can save millions of lives, then yes, we're expendable. Just like anybody else would be in this situation."

He hated when she got all rational. "Well that's just great. We were able to defeat the Empire and come out alive, and _this_ is how I'm going to die."

"Truthfully, Han, I'm not sure Xizor would kill us even if they did refuse his terms, it would be worthless. He'd find some other reason to keep us around. We're not done yet, Han. Maybe the New Republic will have something planned. Or maybe they'll decide we aren't expendable."

"I know we're not done. They're not taking me without a fight."

"All right then, what are we going to do?"

Han thought for a moment and then shrugged his shoulders. "I haven't got the slightest idea."

"I'm sure we can come up with something."

* * *

Hours later, they still had failed to come up with any ideas. Even if they could somehow escape, where were they going to go? They were in the middle of nowhere. Although they were closer to the _Falcon_ than they had been before, it would still take them a considerable amount of time to get there. And even if they did make it, chances were that they wouldn't be able to take off.

Han was restlessly pacing back and forth in the cell when he looked up to where the wall met the ceiling and noticed a small crack. It wasn't much, but being such an ancient building there was a chance there was a weakness there and they might be able to dig themselves out. Deciding it was worth a second look, he moved closer and ran his fingers along the jagged edge, feeling the slightest hint of air seeping through.

"What is it, Han?" Leia asked from the opposite wall.

"There's a crack in the wall here. It might've eroded on the outside and there's a chance we could push it through and get out."

"Are you sure?" Leia asked as she shot up and walked over to him.

"Yeah, here, feel," Han guided her hand to the spot on the wall where he'd felt the air come in, and he saw her brown eyes widen before she looked at him and smiled. He returned with a grin of his own, but before they could explore their options any further, they heard footsteps coming down the hall and they quickly moved away from the wall.

The door opened and revealed Guri, pointing a blaster towards the two of them. "Your people wish to make a statement to us. We thought you should both be there to hear it." She motioned for them to follow and they left their cell behind, following Guri back to the control room where they took their seats just before Xizor entered.

"I Thought you'd like to be here when we receive the message from your people. Guri, play the message."

Guri punched up the control panel and Mon Mothma's holographic image appeared. "Prince Xizor, we have taken some time to contemplate your offer. We realize that General Solo and Princess Leia are important assets to us, but we also realize that letting the Black Sun organization rise to power once again would not be in our best interest. We feel that the trade-off of those two lives for the sake of the New Republic is more important. We regret that we had to make this decision and hope that you will reconsider sparing the lives of our friends. If you release them now we may be able to work out some sort of agreement. But if you don't, we will be forced to take action against you. And to Han and Leia, if you receive this message, we are truly sorry, but we know that you will understand our decision."

The holographic image disappeared and left the room in silence. Leia was glad to hear that Mon Mothma had made the right decision. She didn't want to die, but she was willing to give up her life for the sake of everyone else, just as she always had been. And she knew deep down that Han felt the same way, even if he was unlikely to admit it. Xizor, however, would most certainly not be taking this well. She was right about that.

He turned and glared at them with fury burning behind his eyes, looking ready to lash out. Somehow, he managed to restrain himself and he let out a slow, calming breath before he spoke. "It seems that you two are not as important as we might have hoped. Your precious New Republic seems all too ready to let you go."

"They just know that the value of two lives, whoever they might be, is incomparable to millions," Leia responded.

"Maybe they'll change their minds later. I won't give up so quickly. Take them back to their cell until I figure out what I'm going to do with them."

Guri led them back to the cell, this time at a much more urgent pace.

Han knew that he would have to make a move soon if they were going to get out of there. He only hoped that crack in the wall was as rotted through as he hoped. Guri left them alone once again and Han waited until he thought she was out of earshot. "Leia, we need to get out of here. I think we might be able to break through this spot on the wall." Without hesitation he began digging away at the crack with his fingernails. This was going to be tougher than he thought.

"Han, it's pure concrete. Do you think you can dig a hole in it with your fingers?"

"This place is ancient, Leia. I don't think it's actually concrete. I think it's more like some sort of hardened clay that just _looks _like concrete. There's a good chance it eroded and washed out some on the outside. It might be thinner than you think." He continued to dig at the spot.

"If you say so, I'm willing to try anything at this point. I'm glad they knew enough to let us go, though."

"Yeah, right."

"What, you don't think they made the right decision?"

"I _agree_ with it, I just don't _like_ it. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?"

"Of course not. I don't like it either. But I told you he probably wasn't going to kill us."

"Yeah, I just don't want to stick around and see what he wants to do next. Especially when I'm afraid it's going to involve _you._"

Her ears perked up. "Han, someone's coming."

Han stepped away from the wall just before Xizor himself opened the door. "Princess, follow me. Solo, you stay here." Leia looked back to Han, not wanting to follow, but knowing she had no choice. She tried to give Han a look telling him that she would be fine. She knew how to deal with him. She had done it before.

Xizor gave Han a sly smirk and slammed the door. Han's rage overtook him and he slammed his fists against the wall. But the pain in his hands wasn't the first thing he noticed; it was the fist-sized chunk of the wall that fell to the floor, leaving a small hole where the slightest bit of sunlight peeked through. Maybe there was a way out of this after all. He only hoped Leia would be all right.


	8. Indecent Proposal

Xizor brought Leia outside of the building and into his enormous, elegant ship, which was resting nearby. Things obviously hadn't changed much for him, always needing to make a grand show of his vast wealth. He led her into a room that looked like a lounge, with a bar and a large, inviting couch. She wondered what he could possibly want with her. Only one thing came to mind, and _that_ sure wasn't going to happen, pheromones or no pheromones.

"Please, sit down and make yourself comfortable," Xizor said as he gestured toward the couch.

"I'll sit, but I'm afraid it's impossible for me to be comfortable here alone with you."

"Just give it some time, Princess. Just give it some time. Would you care for a drink?"

"No thank you," Leia said.

"I hope you don't mind if I have a little something," he said as he mixed himself a drink.

"Not at all."

After pouring himself a glass of copper liquid, he strutted over to the couch and sat down next to Leia so that his leg was touching hers. She immediately slid away from him, leaving a gap. "You know, there used to be a time where you didn't mind me so much."

"If you'll remember correctly, there were about five minutes when I didn't mind, and you had to resort to chemical influence to make me that way." Leia was still doing her best to keep her voice calm, but being alone with Xizor and knowing how he felt, she was becoming increasingly worried that he might become angry enough to resort to more physical tactics. She wasn't so much worried for herself, as Xizor seemed to be so infatuated with her that she found it unlikely he'd hurt her. But she was greatly concerned that he might do something to Han.

"You are truly a worthy adversary. I only wish you would realize how wonderful we could be together." By this time Xizor had set his drink down on the table and leaned in much closer to Leia once again, speaking more softly this time. "You could do so much better. When are you going to get rid of that low-life smuggler and realize how much more I can offer you?"

Leia remained quiet for a moment. She wanted to defend her husband, but she knew it was useless. Xizor was obviously so delusional he would never see anyone more fit for Leia than he was, and it made her wonder if his pheromones worked so well that they actually worked on himself.

Finally, she responded, still maintaining her cool demeanor. "I know what you can offer me, and trust me when I tell you that I'm much better off the way I am now."

"We'll just wait and see," Xizor said as his eyes scanned her body. For the past three days she had been wearing the same tank top and loose-fitting cargo shorts; hardly looking her best. "Why don't you go on in there and put on something a little cleaner and nicer. You can have anything you want." He gestured towards a large closet across the room, surely filled with dozens of elegant women's clothes in all sizes.

"No thank you. I'm fine the way I am."

"Yes, you keep telling me that. But why don't I believe you?"

He was really starting to get on her nerves, and she was finding it increasingly difficult to hide the irritation in her voice. "I don't know why you wouldn't believe me, but it's true. I'm quite happy the way I am. Not the current situation, mind you – being held hostage here by you - but everything else is just the way I want it."

"Let's just give you a glimpse of what it could be like then, shall we?" Xizor leaned into Leia and put his hand on her knee. She quickly stood and walked away, as though his touch had given her an electric shock.

She turned to glare at him. "What more do I have to say to you to get the message through?" Her voice rose as the hostility increased. Xizor was obviously not going to give up, although up until that point she hadn't sensed a hint of his pheromones; either that or they simply had no effect on her anymore. Whatever the reason, she felt absolutely no attraction to him.

"You're an incredible woman, Princess. You realize I could have my way with you if I wanted. But that would simply be too easy. I think you may come around, eventually."

He gave her a seductive glance that initially made Leia's stomach churn, but almost instantly she felt a change in the atmosphere and found herself looking at Xizor in a different light. The anger she'd been feeling seemed to have disappeared, and she found herself physically drawn to him in a way she thought she had forgotten. She knew how to fight this tactic as she'd done it before, but she was having difficulty rationalizing the lustful feelings she was having and she seemed to be losing control of her thoughts.

Han was digging furiously at the wall. What had started as a tiny crack was now a fairly sizeable hole, yet still not big enough for him to fit through. He knew he needed to work fast as there was no telling when Xizor might be back. The exertion had made him sweat profusely, so he had tossed his shirt to the ground and used it occasionally to wipe the sweat of his brow or to wipe his hands. His fingertips were raw and bleeding from digging into the wall, and his fingernails had been worn down to the point of becoming completely useless, but there was too much at stake to let a little pain stop him now.

He decided to reach his arm out through the hole and feel around to see what he could find. The room they were kept in was almost entirely beneath the surface, so by reaching through the opening near the ceiling, he was feeling around the ground. His bleeding hand came in contact with a fist-sized rock, and he used it to start chipping away at the hardened clay. Already he could tell that this would make things go much faster, not to mention the relief of no longer using his injured hands.

He could only hope that he would be able to escape before anyone came back, and he hoped that Leia would still be somewhere he could find her.

_If he hurts her in any way, I swear I'll tear his arms off and beat him to death with them._

The next few swings he took with the rock were fueled with the rage he was feeling towards Xizor, and he was quite pleased with the progress he was finally starting to make, but there was no time to stop and think about that.

* * *

"Your thoughts are changing on the subject," Xizor said. "I can see it in your eyes. There's no need to fight it. I can change your life. Give in to what you know is right for both of us."

Her head felt like it was swirling, and Leia found herself almost wanting to give in. But she knew she couldn't. She didn't really _want_ to, did she? It was all an illusion, just the pheromones at work. She didn't want to change her life. She loved how it had turned out. She loved Han.

_Han. Just think of Han. _

The image of her husband and all of his strength and devotion filled her mind and she was immediately reminded of the deep love she shared with him. That was all she needed to remember if she was going to resist. That, and the hatred she still held for Xizor.

Her eyes had been shut tightly as she tried to compose herself, but now that she found herself in control once again, she had a hard time keeping from smiling when she looked back to the Falleen prince. "I don't think so."

Xizor leaned back on the couch, still refusing to cede. "You'll come around. I'm a patient man. I can wait."

"You're going to be waiting an awfully long time, you know."

"Probably not as long as you'd think."

Leia rolled her eyes. Yes, the pheromones _must _work better on himself than anyone else.

"Come on now, you've had a rough couple of days. Why don't you go ahead and freshen up?"

This time he signaled towards the 'fresher next to the closet. With the door open she could see it was absolutely huge. Leia wanted to laugh, knowing of Xizor's tendency to have surveillance cameras recording everything within his ship. She didn't care how nice a good shower would feel, she wasn't going to give him an opportunity to see anything. She also couldn't believe that he still hadn't given up.

* * *

Having finally gotten the hole big enough for him to fit through, Han had escaped the holding cell and was making his way through the thick foliage to the front of the ancient building. The exterior was almost camouflage with the layer of thick, green moss that covered it. When he reached the corner, he peered around the front and saw a large, luxurious ship and figured that if Xizor had taken Leia anywhere, it would be there.

There were no guards outside, as there was likely nobody else on the entire planet, and Han was supposedly locked in his cell. Han hoped he would have the opportunity to take some of his aggression out on Xizor, as he was unable to escape the barrage of terrible images that kept coming to mind of what Xizor might be doing to his wife. Or, more accurately, _with _his wife. If he had done anything to Leia, there was no doubt in Han's mind that he would kill him.

He took one last look around and then he slowly made his way to the entrance ramp of the ship. He climbed up, careful not to make too much noise and entered the main hold. It was similar to that of the _Falcon_, but it was bigger and far more elegant than was needed for any ship. He spotted a large, metal rod leaning up against the wall and grabbed it so that he would have something to help defend himself if he ran into anyone. Now he only hoped he could find his Princess, and that it wasn't too late.


	9. Into the Woods

"Why must you be so difficult?" Xizor asked.

The tone in his voice finally showed his annoyance, and Leia was quite proud of herself. This was the first time she had heard Xizor starting to lose his calm exterior. He must've finally realized he wasn't getting anywhere, and she had to admit it was fun to torture him that way. "I'm only trying to get the point across."

"And what point might that be?"

"That you haven't got a chance in hell."

"You won't take me after you married that, that…."

"I'd choose my words carefully if I were you. That's my husband you're talking about."

"How that happened I'll never understand."

"I think you underestimate Han Solo, Your Highness. He is far more of a man than you could ever dream of being."

Xizor stood up and towered over her. He seemed more than irritated. Now he was angry. "Well then, Princess, if I can't get through to you this time, I guess we're going to have to try this again later. Maybe after I do a bit of damage to that Correlian low-life you seem so quick to defend. Let's get you back to your cell. You're not through with me. You'll come around."

He Forcefully grabbed her by the arm and led her through the doorway. While she attempted to resist, he was simply too strong. But she was greatly concerned as to what he might do when he saw Han again.

She was unable to contemplate that thought any further, as the moment Xizor palmed the door switch and it slid open, she was startled to see Han, bare-chested, standing not more than a meter away from her. He hardly had time to bring back the metal rod, just as he shouted to Leia, "Duck!"

Leia did as she was told and Han determinedly at Xizor's face. He didn't have a chance to yell, let alone move before the rod connected with the side of his head, knocking him to the ground and rendering him immediately unconscious. "Damn, that felt good," Han said, unable to hide his satisfaction.

"Am I ever glad to see you," Leia said, pulling his head down for a quick kiss. "Now let's get out of here before he wakes up."

"One second," Han said just before giving Xizor a hard kick in his midsection.

"Come on," Leia said as she grabbed him by the arm, ushered him down the ramp and fled into the woods.

* * *

They had been running for what seemed like forever. Han knew the general direction they needed to head in to find the _Falcon_, if that was even going to help, but he also knew that was their only option at this point. The finally came across a stream, and knelt down to take a quick drink since they were far enough into the forest to risk a quick break. "I'm not sure I've ever been so glad to see you in my entire life," Leia said between mouthfuls of water.

"You and me both," Han replied, sitting back on his knees. "I only wish I could've taken a few more swings at Greenie."

"I would've liked to take a few more swings myself. How far do you think we are?"

"Luckily the building they had us in was actually closer to the ship than we had gone in the first place. Unfortunately, they also brought us to the other side of a pretty big mountain. It's gonna be rough, but I'm sure we can make it. We'll have to."

Leia nodded. She cupped her hand and took one last sip from the stream before Han helped her to her feet and she looked up at him. "Guess we better get going then."

Han nodded, took her hand, and they ran further into the woods towards the mountain.

* * *

Xizor awakened with a terrible headache, and it took him a moment to recall what had happened. When he finally remembered the low-life human taking him down he felt a surge of anger flood him and he shot up to his feet so he could get his men and find his prisoners.

He was going to get them back. And he was going to get even with Han Solo.

* * *

The muscles in Han's legs were beginning to cramp up as they climbed, and he could tell that Leia was also feeling the effects of their ascent by her labored breathing and slowing pace. Although they were still making decent progress, darkness was falling, and it had become difficult to see. Han hoped that the moons would be out that night, because without their light, it was going to be a short trip.

Off in the distance he heard the low rumble of thunder. They were still well below the tree line, so he was unable to see which direction the storm was headed. He hoped it would harmlessly pass them by, but he knew better than that. He'd been anything but lucky on this trip, so he prepared himself for the inevitable storm. "There's a good chance we're going to get rained on," he said to Leia as they ascended.

"Figures. What's the difference? I needed a shower anyway. So do you, by the way."

"Thanks for noticing." It was comforting that they were still able to keep their humor.

Another rumble of thunder cracked in the distance. This one a little bit louder, and they gave each other a knowing look. It was easier to run if they didn't talk, so they continued on in silence.

* * *

Xizor stormed down the ramp of his ship and into the ancient temple. "Guri! Guri!"

He shouted for her in an angry tone he rarely used. Everything always went his way. He wasn't supposed to be in situations like this and he was beyond furious. He ran into Guri in their communications room where she was waiting for him, blaster in hand. "Round everyone up," he said to her through gritted teeth. "They've escaped."

* * *

The rain had begun to fall. It was slow, but steady at this point. However, they could tell it was going to get worse by the increasing loudness of the thunder. It was also nearly pitch black. Even if the moons were out that night, it wouldn't have made any difference with the thick cloud-cover.

They moved slowly forward, hand in hand, straining to see what was in front of them. It became evident that they were not going to be able to go much farther unless somehow there was more light. That problem was remedied for a few seconds by the sudden bolt of lightning that streaked across the sky, illuminating the mountainside as though it were the middle of the day.

Han and Leia stopped in their tracks; startled by how quickly the storm seemed to have descended upon them. Until that moment there had only been a distant flicker of lightning, barely enough to brighten the tree tops. Then they winced at the inevitable yet startlingly loud crack of thunder followed soon after. They must've been directly in the middle of it, and they looked to each other as the skies seemed to open up, and the torrential downpour began. A strong wind began to blow the stinging rain into their faces.

Through eyes squinting in pain from the pelting rain and fierce wind, they kept them open just enough to search for what to do next, but still hadn't moved. They just squeezed each other's hands more tightly.

The cool rain continued to drench them, and another bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, to illuminate the area just enough for Han to see a rock overhang not too far away that he hoped would serve to keep them at least a little dryer than they were at the moment. It was apparent that they had no choice but to wait out the storm.

Han silently pulled Leia over to what he hoped would be a safe place to protect them from the rain and lightning. When they reached the alcove, they ducked under the rock overhead and walked back as far as they could, maybe only a bit over a meter, but at least enough to keep them out of the rain if they stayed back against the rock wall. Luckily, there was a small space just far back enough to keep them out of the rain, except their feet, which were just far enough out to be exposed to the elements once they were seated as far back as they could go.

Han put his arm around Leia and pulled her close against his now-chilled skin. Since night had fallen, the temperature had dropped. And the rain and wind weren't__helping any, either. Add to that the fact that there was the inevitable drop in body temperature simply from no longer exerting themselves by ascending the mountain. It was far from freezing out, but it was cold enough to make their teeth chatter since they were soaked from head to toe. Not to mention the fact that they had become so used to the warm weather of the daytime on this planet that this alteration in the weather was even harder for them to take.__

The storm raged on, and the lightning became more frequent, with thunder was loud enough to cause the ground to shake beneath them. The sound of the rain became louder, and it was then that they realized that the hail had begun to fall, pelting their exposed ankles just enough to sting, but not enough to bruise. At least it was better that their legs were getting hailed on rather than their heads.

Leia shivered within Han's arms, burying her face against his chest as he held her more tightly. "You okay?" He asked

"Never been better," she responded through chattering teeth.

Han rubbed his hand up and down her arm, hoping the friction might warm her up a little bit, and hoping it might warm him up a little bit in the process. "These storms usually pass pretty quickly. We should be ok in a few minutes," Han yelled through the noise of the wind, rain and thunder.

Leia simply looked up at him, giving him a look that told him she didn't believe a word he had just said. He didn't really believe what he had said either, but he hoped more than anything that he was right. Han wrapped his other arm around her and pulled her into a protective embrace.

They were cold, wet and miserable. Not to mention that they were probably being pursued by now. Who knew how many people Xizor had with him or how much time they had? The chances were also good that they were not going to be pursued on foot, which made their present situation seem all the more doomed to failure. Still, they had surely been in more dire circumstances, and they would not give up until they were forced to.


	10. Over the Mountain

Xizor had assembled the crew he had with him on-planet. It wasn't much, but he was confident that with him and Guri leading them after two exhausted, escaped prisoners on foot with no supplies, they were going to succeed in their mission.

He silently cursed himself for allowing Rendo Slekk - a young and impressionable Force-sensitive individual - to leave the planet before everything had been settled. Xizor had come across Rendo while he was roaming around the seedy underground, allowing the galaxy to believe he was still dead, and waiting for the right time to bring his Black Sun back to power. Luckily Xizor had gotten to the young man before Skywalker did, and it was not difficult to convince him to use his gift for whatever Xizor might ask of him.

It was amazing what some people would do for money. Just to think; if he hadn't found him he might be busy doing completely useless things like levitating rocks. But here with him, he could help to bring down an entire freighter ship. Xizor smiled at the brilliance of that plan, but was hit with an undeniable surge of anger when he remembered once again that the kid was nowhere to be found. The prince had become too cocky. He had incorrectly assumed that nothing could go wrong at this juncture, and when the boy asked if he could get away for a little while and enjoy himself, Xizor didn't hesitate to let him go, as long as he returned in three days.

He hadn't believed that the Solos would cause him so much trouble. He had been wrong, but trouble or not, he was going to get them back.

Xizor turned and faced his crew, frowning at the sight of the four of them. He wasn't worried about Guri. She was by far the most reliable of any of them. Good help is so much better when it's manufactured. Then there was the short, stubby little man known as Tako, who probably couldn't run more than a few feet, let alone chase anyone over a mountain. He'd probably prove to be completely useless in this venture, but he didn't hire him for his physical prowess, he hired him for his piloting skills.

Unfortunately that wasn't likely to come into play in the near future. Then there were his two guards, who were adequate at best. They were in decent physical condition, and they knew how to handle themselves in a fight, but they were humans. He didn't like employing human guards because they usually failed to live up to his expectations. But he was in the middle of rebuilding a dynasty, and things had to start small.

The prince heaved a sigh and decided they would probably be fine. After all, they were only chasing after humans, one of them the only human he ever lusted after and couldn't have. But he would have her. Sooner or later, he always got what he was after.

* * *

The rain had finally let up, and the thunder was once again just a rumble in the distance. Han and Leia held onto each other in the darkness, trying to keep warm. It wouldn't have been nearly as bad if their clothes hadn't become saturated with rainwater.

Han peered out into the forest and noticed that he could see a little better. "I think we might be able to see our way back to the ship now," Han said. "Looks like the sky is clearing. And the two moons should give us plenty of light to see where we're going."

"I sure hope so, because I want nothing more than to get off this damn mountain."

Han couldn't have agreed more. He stood up and then reached back to help his wife to her feet. They walked slowly out of their little shelter and surveyed their surroundings. The ground had become soft and mushy from the downpour., but at least they could see that the moons were beginning to shine through the diminishing cloud cover.

Han turned and looked at Leia when he heard her teeth chattering again, experiencing a chill of his own but far more concerned for her. "You gonna be ok?" He asked as he put his arm around her again, feeling her cool, clammy skin.

"S-s-sure. Once w-we g-get going I'll be f-fine."

"Well then, let's get the hell out of here." Without another word, Han led Leia further up the mountain.

* * *

Unfortunately for Prince Xizor, his luxury liner was not equipped with the kind of scanning equipment that would have been helpful in this type of pursuit. He hadn't had time to make any modifications after he had acquired it, and he was irritated that he had to start from scratch again. He was once one of the richest and most powerful beings in the galaxy, and now he was simply another wealthy criminal. Tired of laying low for so many years, he was determined to build up his fortune and make himself known once again.

He had made himself comfortable on the sofa in his lounge, fixed himself a beverage of clear, blue color and stared at it through the glass as he swirled it around. They had to wait to take off until after the violent thunderstorm had passed since his ship wouldn't be able to handle a lightning strike.

The dark prince remained calm and patient. He knew that Han and Leia didn't have a chance of making it back to their ship before he found them. They were on foot, and he felt assured that the storm had to have slowed them down as well. He would get to them soon enough.

He suddenly heard Tako's voice. "Storm's past us. You want me to take her up now?" The short pilot asked from the entrance to the cockpit.

Xizor never took his eyes off of his drink. "Find me my prisoners."

"Yes, Your Majesty," he replied before stepping out of the room.

Xizor took a sip of his beverage and let out a sly smile. He would have the princess soon.

* * *

The light of the moons was more than enough to enable Han and Leia to see clearly. The problem now was that they had to deal with the fact that the terrain had become incredibly slippery. Their feet were sliding around in the mud, and they had each stumbled to the ground more than once.

They had made it over the peak, so now all they had to do was get down the other side of the mountain. The moonlight reflected off the ocean in front of them, and if they looked closely enough, they could actually make out the dark outline of the _Falcon._ This may have been more encouraging except for the fact that from this distance it wasn't much more than a speck in the water.

Going down the mountain proved to be much less strenuous on their legs, and they found were able to keep up a good pace; or at least as good a pace as was possible with the constant sliding in the mud. Han was getting worried that their time was running out. Surely by now they were being pursued, and he only hoped they had covered enough distance.

Without warning, Han slipped once again on the slick mud, only this time he took Leia with him. He had been holding her hand and in his effort to steady himself, he had dragged her down. But instead of simply thudding to the ground, they found themselves sliding down the steep, muddy mountain.

They fell faster and faster, and got caught up in a wash of rain water rushing down the mountain, limbs flailing uselessly about. Their progress slowed when the slope became more gradual, and without warning Han came to a complete stop when his ribs slammed into a large rock. Not far behind him, Leia thudded into him as he let out a grunt of pain. Then Han slowed with the decrease in the angle, and stopped completely as his side slammed into a rock, with Leia not far behind thudding into him as he let out a grunt of pain.

The force of the landing knocked the wind out of him a little more than he expected it to, and when he reached for his side he winced when he touched the tender area. He was definitely going to have a nice bruise in the morning. He tried to ask Leia if she was all right, but found it difficult to speak due to the sharp pain in his ribs when he attempted to fill his lungs with air.

Leia sat up next to him, now covered in mud from their slick descent. She reached over and touched Han's muddy shoulder, which was heaving as he tried to catch his breath. He rolled onto his back so he could see her, but his body didn't quite feel ready to sit up yet. "You ok?" She asked him.

"I'll be fine," Han said weakly, the pain still radiating from his ribs.

"You sure?" She asked skeptically. She attempted to wipe some of the mud off his face, but found it didn't do much good since her own hands were completely covered in it.

"Sure, see?" He said as he struggled to sit up, struggling to keep himself from wincing. He turned and looked at Leia, wondering if she was going to press him anymore on the issue. "Perfectly fine."

Leia did not appear convinced, but they didn't have much of a choice. "If you say so. Come on, I'm going to help you up anyway." She stood next to him, offering her hand. He took it and she slowly got him up to his feet. He exhaled sharply and continued to hold onto his side. "You better be able to keep up, now. I can't have you holding us back."

"Don't worry. I'll keep going until I can't take one more step. And let me tell you, that'd take an awfully long time." His voice still sounded strained, but better than it had been moments ago.

"I hope you're right," she replied as she started to walk down the mountain again with Han following closely behind. Now all they had to do was get to the _Falcon_ and pray that it would start.

They were getting much closer now. And there were the first hints in the sky of the sun coming up. Han was wheezing slightly, but Leia seemed to be doing her best to ignore it. The last thing they needed to be doing was stopping every five seconds for her to ask Han if he was all right. No matter what, he would keep going until he collapsed. He just had to hope it wouldn't come to that.

* * *

Prince Xizor's luxury ship cruised over the vast landscape, hovering not too far from the surface, but high enough so that they wouldn't damage the ship by running into any unusually tall trees. The scanners were working well enough, but unfortunately they had failed to come across any human life forms.

Xizor continued to sit back and wait patiently. They were getting closer to their destination, and he knew that they would have them back soon.

Suddenly, he felt the ship slow to a stop, and he grinned wickedly because that could only mean one thing: they must have found them. He stood and walked towards the cockpit to find out exactly how close they were, and when he sauntered in, he found the Tako talking to Guri, but the stout man became quiet when Xizor entered the room, and the falleen's smile faded.

Guri turned to him and spoke. "They're not here, Your Highness."

No, he didn't like this at all. "What do you mean, not here? Where else would they have gone?"

"I'm sorry. But we scanned the area. There's no sign of them."

Xizor pushed Guri forcefully aside and leaned over to look through the cockpit window. There below them was the comm station, and there was nobody in sight. The place looked like it hadn't been entered in years.

Xizor thought for a moment. Could they have missed them on the way? No, not possible. The scanners surely would have picked them up. Maybe they had gotten lost on their way and gone off the scope of the scanners, although that scenario seemed unlikely. Solo must've known this planet well, having been here on many occasions in his smuggling days. There was no way that he could've gone far enough off track to not even show up on the scopes.

Guri interrupted his thoughts. "Perhaps they've headed back to their ship."

Xizor looked up at her. "Why would they do that? They don't have any use of communications and it won't take off."

"Well, Your Highness, it's actually most likely that all of their functions have been restored."

"And why might that be?"

"Because we no longer have someone here making sure that the ship remains in its malfunctioning state."

Xizor cursed to himself, again reminded that it was a bad idea to let Rendo take off on a joyride. He had__let his guard down. He _never_ let his guard down, and he vowed to never make that mistake again. Without a Force-sensitive individual holding their ship to the ground and blocking their communications, there was nothing to stop them from taking off, nothing except for him. "Pilot! Head for the ocean!"


	11. The Escape

The sun had started glowing just over the horizon. Having finally made it to the other side of the mountain, Han and Leia treaded onward, finally moving through the forest on flat terrain. The mud on their skin had started to dry and crack, and Leia thought for about the hundredth time about how nice it would be to rinse it off, considering what a sad sight the two of them had become.

They were cut, bruised, covered head to toe in mud and had been wearing the same clothes for the past three days. If their lives weren't currently on the line, she might be tempted to laugh at their current situation. She hoped everything would turn out okay, so that maybe one day they could look back and do just that.

Han continued to hold his side, and though she could see the pain in his eyes, Leia tried her best not even to look at him as they ran. She was leading the way, holding Han's hand behind her and trying to get him to keep up. His shortness of breath was cause for concern, but they needed to keep going, and she knew that if she looked at his face she would probably become more worried than she already was, so she opted to concentrate on running.

Her ears perked up when she heard the unmistakable sound of small waves lapping up against the shoreline. Urgently, she pulled Han along faster. They were nearly in the clear, as long as the _Falcon_ was back in working order, anyway. She hoped that whatever this so-called 'Jedi friend' of Xizor's had done would no longer be affecting the vessel.

Their feet met sand and they came to the last row of trees separating the forest from the beach. There, just where they had left it, was the _Millenium Falcon_. "We're almost there, Han. Can you make it?" She finally allowed herself to turn and look at her husband. He was letting out short, strangled breaths, and his eyes were squeezed shut as he continued to grip at the injured area on his side, his other hand clenching hers.

"Yeah, let's hurry."

Leia pulled at his arm once again as they ran into the salty sea, finally washing most of the mud from their clothes and skin. Fortunately, it wasn't too far to swim out to the ship. When Leia was in over her head, she began swimming as fast as she could towards their destination. After a few frantic strokes, she realized that she couldn't hear Han right next to her anymore, and she turned to make sure he was still on his way, only to find him struggling to keep his head above water. Continuing on land was one thing, but he was in no shape to be swimming at the moment.

Leia was mad at herself for not realizing, and she surged back to help him. When she reached the struggling Correlian, she swam behind him and slipped her arm under his and across his chest. "Are you all right?" she said to him.

"Yeah, just don't let go," he replied, his voice barely more than a whisper, his face just barely breaking the surface.

She pulled him along as best she could, annoyed that he had to be so much bigger than she was. By the time they reached the ship, her breathing started to sound more like Han's, and she was relieved when she could finally pull herself up towards the top hatch. Reaching back, she helped hoist Han up along side her, and he looked equally relieved to once again be walking instead of swimming, even though__ what he had been doing was more along the lines of just trying to stay afloat. They quickly made their way to the top hatch and Han entered the security code and exposing the entrance.

Once they were inside they moved quickly to the cockpit, hoping that everything was back in working order.

There was a good chance it would be back to normal. Xizor had alluded to the fact that he had some Force-sensitive individual who had caused Han to crash the _Falcon. _And whoever had crashed it had most likely also kept the communications from working. They figured that once they had been captured, there would no longer be any reason for anyone to bother with keeping the ship incapacitated, and they prayed they were right about that assumption.

Leia felt a surge of relief when Han keyed up the engines and heard the familiar sounds of the ship coming to life. She released the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "Let's go home," Leia said.

"I'm with you on that one, sweetheart."

Leia sat down next to Han in the copilot seat, watching as he worked the controls before she felt the ship slowly rise up out of the water. "Now let's just hope we get out of this atmosphere in time," Han said as they rose slowly off the ground.

Before they gained much altitude, there came an unmistakable sound.

"Tell me that's not what I think it is," Han said.

* * *

"Damn you, don't you have anything more powerful than that?" Xizor yelled as he pounded his fists against the control panel.

"I'm sorry, sir. We weren't anticipating the need for such things yet. We only have the necessities. We were going to upgrade the weapons systems later." Tako was almost shaking as he delivered the news, knowing Xizor was not someone you wanted to upset.

"Well, keep firing! We can't let them get away."

"Yes, Your Highness." And he fired again.

* * *

The bolts shook the cockpit, but still hadn't caused any permanent damage. The shields were doing their job, but there was no telling for how long.

It was time to retaliate. "Leia, I need you to go to the lower turret and blast the hell out of that green son-of-a bitch."

"I'm on my way," she replied as she exited the cockpit. Han had every confidence in his wife's shooting, he just hoped she would get there in time. He heard her voice through the intercom. "They're right on our tail. Don't worry, a few shots and they should be out of our way."

* * *

Xizor watched in anger as the _Millenium Falcon_ got closer and closer to space. He knew his chances were much better when they couldn't go to lightspeed, and he cursed himself for not permanently disabling their ship when he'd had the chance. Why had he grown so careless? Suddenly, there was a flash that caused him to flinch.

"They're firing at us, Your Highness."

"Well, fire back at them!"

"Yes, sir." But the next shot was enough to knock Xizor off his feet. He knew that Leia must've been doing the shooting as Han Solo wasn't the type to let anyone else fly his ship, not even his wife.

Leia was turning out to be a better shot than anyone Xizor had ever worked with, and it made him want her now more than ever. That thought was interrupted as another blast hit them with enough force to knock out the lights in the cockpit.

"They've hit the engines, we're going down!"

Xizor sneered as he watched the _Falcon_ fade away. He knew he had lost this time, but there would be other chances. Sooner or later, he would have his princess. And then everything went dark.

* * *

Leia heaved a sigh of relief as she watched the ship leave a trail of smoke from a smoldering engine in its descent. "We're all clear, flyboy. Now let's get the hell out of here."

"I love it when you shoot the bad guys. Now get up here and help me savor the victory."

Leia climbed up the ladder and made her way back to the cockpit. Han was finishing setting the coordinates back to Coruscant, and just after Leia sat down next to him, he sent them into hyperspace. There was nothing left to do now but wait to get home.

"Nice shooting," Han said as he reached over to squeeze Leia's hand.

"Well, I learned from the best," she replied.

"Chewie," they said simultaneously, just before bursting into laughter. But Han's laughter was cut short as he grabbed at the stabbing pain in his side. "I forgot," Leia said as she reached over and touched his arm.

"So had I. I think I'm pretty well reminded now."

"How bad is it?"

"Just a little bruise. You know me."

"Yes, I do. And I know when you're lying."

"Okay, fine. Maybe it's a _little _more than a bruise."

"A little more, huh? Han, you could barely breathe before. Now, I know you may be a little out of shape…"

"Hey, I am _not_ out of shape."

"Well, it's one or the other. So what's it going to be?"

"How do you do that?"

"It's a gift. Now come on, how bad is it?"

"Honestly? It hurts like hell. I mean, I have no idea how I made it all night like that. It hurts to breathe just sitting here."

"Let's go back there so I can take a look at you."

"You can look at me anytime you want, Princess."

"Let's go, Solo."

Leia helped ease Han to his feet, and they went back to their cabin and sat down on their bunk. They were both a complete and utter mess. Leia lifted Han's arm to get a better view of his injured ribs. "Phew!" Leia winced as she turned her head away from him

"What, is it really that bad?" Han asked, looking genuinely more worried than he had before.

"I'm sorry, it's just that…you, well, you could really use a shower."

Han smiled. "Listen, you're no bed of roses right now yourself, sweetheart."

Leia chuckled and then went back to examine Han's ribs. She traced her fingers lightly along his skin where it had begun to turn purple. "I'm just going to press here for a second to see if they're broken."

"Ahhhhhh!" Han yelped, as Leia put some pressure on him.

"They're definitely bruised, but I'm pretty sure they're not broken."

"I'd hate to know what it feels like when they _are_ broken."

"Let's try not to find out. So it's probably going to be pretty tender here for a while. And you'll still have shortness of breath for at least a couple of days."

"I didn't realize I married a doctor."

"If I were a doctor you'd be paying me for all this. I'm working for free. Consider yourself lucky."

"I always do. You're quite a mess here, too," he said as he reached up to brush his thumb along her reddened cheek. "After being held prisoner and falling down a mountain in a horrendous lightning storm, I'd almost forgotten we had that crash landing. How does this feel?"

"Probably no worse than that cut above your eye."

Han reached up to touch his forehead. "With the new injury and all, I didn't even remember about that."

It was at that moment that Leia noticed Han's fingertips for the first time. They were still raw and red from digging his way out of their cell. "Look at your hands," she said as she took one of his into her own.

"Aw, like I said, that's nothin' compared to everything else."

"You're giving me quite the opportunity to test my first aid skills, aren't you?"

"Hey, when I know that the doctor is as beautiful as you are, I practically do it on purpose."

She smiled at him. Even looking as worn out and beat up as he was, she still loved everything about him. And she loved that he made it known that he felt the same way.

"Well, I think I need to get out of these clothes and then burn them. They're just about ready to run away on their own, and yours look about the same," Han said.

"You're telling me. I've never been so ready to get out of a pair of clothes."

They looked at each other and laughed at the unintended suggestiveness of the comment, then Han jumped at the unexpected opportunity. "Oh really, Princess? I can think of a few times maybe where we might've been a little more ready."

"Well, we're not going to be ready for anything like _that_ until we get cleaned up."

"No arguments there."

Han unbuckled the belt of his damp shorts, finding it difficult to slide them off since they were clinging to his legs. He stopped midway as he felt the sharp pain in his ribs. "Uh, Leia? Could you, um, help me out here? I can't really bend over so good."

"Sure you can't, Han." She knew he was serious, but it was more fun to tease him. She helped him out of the rest of his clothes and then got out of her own, leaving the garments in a filthy heap to deal with later. "Well, I don't know about you, but I definitely need that shower," Leia said.

"You sure do," Han said as he waved his hand in front of his face pretending to wave off her stench.

Leia playfully tapped at his arm before grabbing it and pulling him toward the 'fresher. She turned on the water and felt the warmth with her fingertips. Once she determined the temperature was just right, she stepped in and pulled Han behind her, looking down to see days' worth of mud and dirt disappear down the drain. She was glad to know that they would be home soon enough so there was no real need to conserve water rations at this point, especially since they were showering together.

"I've never been so happy to finally take a shower," Han said.

"What about after we were in that garbage masher on the Death Star?"

"That was different. You weren't in there with me then. Trust me, this is much better."

She couldn't argue with that. They washed the dirt off of each other's bodies and relished the warmth as long as they could. Han shaved off the several days' worth of stubble and watched Leia rinse the shampoo out of her long, chestnut hair. When they could barely see each other through the steam, they finally shut off the water and draped themselves in large, white towels, Han's around his waist, and Leia's pulled up under her arms. The shower stall was left a dingy mess, but that could be cleaned some other time.

"Come over here and sit down; we need to put another bandage on that cut," Leia said, pointing at Han's forehead. "And while we're at it, on a few of those fingers, too." Once he reached her, she inspected his hands. "Didn't you used to have fingernails?"

"Nah, you're imagining things." Han sat on a stool as Leia wrapped up Han's fingers and then gently applied a bandage to his forehead. After a few silent moments, Han finally felt the need to say something. "Leia? I'm sorry I acted so crazy when I found out about you and that Xizor… thing. It's just that every once in a while I get a little scared that I could lose you. I don't even know why sometimes, I just…"

Leia watched Han struggle to find the words to finish his sentence, and she sat down on his lap, brushing his wet hair away from his face. "Han, what we have together is irreplaceable. There isn't another man in the universe I would rather spend the rest of my life with, even if you are a little cut and bruised. You don't ever have to be afraid to lose me."

Han knew she felt that way, but somehow it was more reassuring to hear her say it. He reached up with a half-bandaged hand and pulled her head to his and kissed her softly, and a few moments later they pulled away and smiled at one another. Just one look into his eyes told her how much he loved her.

After one more quick kiss, Leia stood, pulled Han by the arm and led him back to their bunk. Without another word, Leia sprawled out on the bed, letting out a sigh. In all her efforts to get clean, she had forgotten how exhausted she was.

Han lay down and curled up behind her, enveloping her in his arms. "It's too bad we're both so tired. I can think of a great way to pass the time." His breath was warm in her ear, and he placed a soft kiss just under her lobe.

As much as she might have wanted to, she was far too tired to do anything but sleep, and she was fairly certain Han felt the same, especially with his bruised ribs. "Han, we're both about ready to pass out. We're going to sleep. If anything else, we should probably consider eating first."

"Yeah, I'm pretty hungry, but I think I'm too tired to eat."

"Me, too. But when we wake up, I'm sure we'll be well rested and ready for anything."

"You'd better mean that."

"Don't you trust me?"

"Always." He kissed her again, and after a few moments she pulled away, knowing that if they kept this up, they were never going to get to sleep. For once, he didn't seem to mind.

"Oh, pillow, I've missed you," Han said sleepily.

Leia couldn't help but laugh. "Have I said thank you yet for saving me again?"

"Nah, but that's okay. It's just what I do."

"My hero," Leia said sarcastically.

He smoothed some wet strands of hair back and softly kissed the spot behind her ear. "Goodnight, Leia," he whispered. "I love you."

"I love you, Han. More than anything." And within moments, they were asleep.

THE END

Thanks for reading, and please let me know if you enjoyed it! It would encourage me to post more.


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